A/HRC/7/5 page 23 goods” (guideline 4.10), particularly for women (guideline 8.3) and vulnerable groups (guideline 8.1). The Right to Food Guidelines call on States to set up mechanisms to inform people of their rights and improve access to justice for the right to food (guideline 7). B. The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 63. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the decision of the Human Rights Council in its resolution 2006/3 to renew the mandate of the working group on an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights for a period of two years with a specific mandate to elaborate an Optional Protocol, as well as the work done at the July 2007 session. 64. The elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights will mark significant progress at the international level in developing the “justiciability” of economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to food. It will build on the developments in case law at national, regional and international levels, such as those on which the Special Rapporteur has reported in the past.65 During his missions to countries such as Brazil, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Guatemala, India, Mongolia and others, the Special Rapporteur found that it is sometimes very difficult for poor people, especially peasant farmers, to have access to justice before local and national tribunals. The adoption of the Optional Protocol would greatly improve access to justice for victims of violations of the right to food, by allowing individuals or groups to lay complaints directly before the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 65. The draft Optional Protocol prepared by the Chairperson of the Working Group is an excellent starting point. The Special Rapporteur believes that all human rights recognized in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights are justiciable and encourages States to ensure that all these rights are subject to a communications procedure. C. Progress in the justiciability of the right to food 66. Justiciability is absolutely essential for the realization of the right to food. Making the right to food justiciable means that people can seek remedy and accountability if their right to food is violated. Justiciability is still not a reality in every country, but significant progress has been made in recent years in a number of Latin American, African and Asian countries. 67. India provides one of the best examples in the world in terms of the justiciability of the right to food.66 The Constitution of India prohibits discrimination and recognizes all human rights. The right to life is recognized as a directly justiciable fundamental right (art. 21), while the right to food is defined as a directive principle of State policy (art. 47). As it has interpreted 65 A/61/306 and E/CN.4/2002/58. 66 See E/CN.4/2006/44/Add.2.